A Light In The Dark
by xEPICxBULLSEYEx
Summary: Zeb's been away with the army for a while. After 4 years, he comes back and everythings different. Is it for the best, or for the worst? My first real AU, please be nice. Constructive criticism appreciated
1. Chapter 1

**A/N, Hey guys, this is a new story I want to try out. Hope you enjoy it.**

Chapter 1: Brother from a long way

 **Ezra's POV**

I haven't seen him for years. The last time I saw him, he was sent out to Afghanistan by the US army. That was 4 years ago, Zeb hadn't even called us once after a tragedy that happened a year ago. No-one's bothered him about it, we heard it was bad. The best part is, he's considered a war hero. Zeb doesn't like that title, says he didn't earn it.

"Ezra!" a male voice shouted. "We've got to go, he'll be at the station soon!"

That was my dad, Kanan. He used to be part of the army too but he didn't like it, he said it changed too much. My mum, Hera. She was part of the air force, they met when Kanan had been tasked to guard an air base. They tell us exciting tales about when they served.

"Ezra!" an annoyed female voice shouted, it was full of authority.

That's Sabine, my super annoying sister. She tends to boss me about and she gets her paints everywhere. I love her though, she annoying but she's my sister. Like my brother Zeb, she doesn't see me as the teen I am but the weak kid I use to be.

"Ezra! I will break you piece by piece if you make use late!" Sabine shouted.

"Hold on!" I shouted back, I couldn't find my shoes.

"They're down here" Hera shouted. "You always lose your shoes"

I do, I have a place for my things but I could never remember where I put them.

"On my way" I ran downstairs and was met by warm smiles, then Sabine's scowl as I put on my shoes. "Let's go"

I jump up and run towards the door, it was dark but I knew where the car was. The car was a Ghost, it's a big yet fast car. Hera's had it for a while, she always finds something wrong with it. I think it's Chopper, our younger brother. He's only a few years old, he's great at breaking things. Chopper's real name is Henry, we call him Chopper because he broke Kanan's bike first. That wasn't a fun week.

"Are you excited?" Sabine asked me, she grabbed my hand and hugged me. "4 years Ezra!"

"I know Sabine, I can count" I joke. "Of course I'm excited, I wonder why he's been out the country for so long"

"I know, it's weird" Sabine thought about it for a second, she leaned over the driver's seat. "Didn't you say something about being investigated?"

"Yeah" Hera answered light heartily. "It's about something that happened a few years ago"

"Don't ask him about it" Kanan said firmly, he needs to get use to us again.

"Fine" Sabine dropped back in her seat. "Why did we take the car if the station is only a few blocks away?"

"You have no idea how much stuff he'll bring back" I looked out the window, the streetlights are illuminating the ground occasionally. "Zeb loves his souvenirs"

"That he does" Sabine jumped out the car as soon as it stopped, I didn't realise we were here already.

I got out of the car and followed my family, they had all sorts of feelings swirling around them. I had a gift for it, I don't know how but I can guess what people are feeling.

"Zeb!" Hera shouts as she runs towards the train that's just pulled in.

I stop next to Kanan, he looks proud. I'm the only one who hasn't got that look. Sabine got it when she was offered a place in an art college, Chopper got it when he started figuring things out by himself. I never got that look, never did anything to make him proud.

"Don't look like that" Sabine punched my arm lightly.

"Look like what?" I saw she was annoyed.

"That look you always give us when you're in deep thought, we can tell somethings bothering you" Sabine placed a hand on my shoulder. "You can either A, talk about it or B, stop looking like that"

"Ok" Sabine smiled weakly, she knows I hate talking about things. I can tell it annoys her that I never talk to her about it.

Hera walked back towards us, she was clung to a muscly arm. He was tall and had a head with hardly any hair, he dropped a big box and hugged Kanan. It was him.

"Zeb!" I Sabine jumped at him and hugged him tightly, she was crying. "I missed you so much"

"I missed you all too" Zeb laughed.

 **Sabine's POV**

I couldn't believe it, he was finally here. I didn't him to leave again, it was tough knowing he was in such a dangerous place. I noticed that Ezra wasn't with us, but standing at least 10 feet away. I let go of Zeb and take a step towards Ezra, he flinches and I saw pain in his eyes.

"Ezra?" I ask weakly, he runs at me and tackles me into a hug.

"I just can't talk to him" Ezra cries, he's starting to get taller to me.

"Why not?" I'm surprised, Ezra was the most excited.

"I didn't make Kanan proud" Ezra hugged me tighter, why would he think that?"

"You have made him proud" I reassure him, I kiss him forehead. He may be annoying but he's my brother, I only annoy him because I like the attention. When he was small, he admired me like I was a god. He loved to see my colours turn something so bland into a dream.

"He's never gave me the look" Ezra looks at me, his eyes look sore.

"I know, but he is proud" Ezra pushes me away, hard.

"You don't understand!" I'm hurt, he's never done this before. "You don't know what it's like to be a failure! The son who lets everyone down!"

He runs off towards the car, Kanan was about to chase after him but Zeb beat him to it. Zeb's gotten fast, _really_ fast.

"What was that about?" Kanan asked me.

"He thinks you're not proud" I look at my parents, Hera wants to know more. "He thinks he's a failure of a son, he thinks he let us all down"

"He has" Kanan spoke up, I couldn't believe he said that about his own son.

"Kanan!" Hera is furious.

"A failure can only be a failure for so long, then it is fixed and becomes an achievement for everyone" He looks at me. "He's never made me proud and has let me down, but only because he thinks these things"

"I-" I was cut off by Hera, she understood something I didn't.

"He means that Ezra will become something better" Hera hugged us both then led us to the car, I understood now.

 **Zeb's POV**

I just get back and I'm greeted with this, the kid's always been a problem. That's not a bad thing, it'll be just like the old days. I found the kid sat against the car, he's crying heavily.

"Hey" I say, he looks up at me and only cries more. "I thought you would have been happy to see me"

"I do it's just…" he hugs me when I sit down next to him. "I haven't made any of you proud, I never made dad proud"

"Typical you" I put an arm around him, he's grown quite a bit. "I was in the same position as you at your age"

"Really?" his crying has calmed, he's interested.

"Yeah" I pat Ezra's head. "I thought I hadn't made him proud, turns out he always was"

"How?" Ezra pleaded.

"I just worked hard, been myself" I paused and smiled at him. "Never gave up"

"That's it?" he must feel better, he smiled.

"Sorry about running away" I put a finger to my mouth telling him to shut up.

"It's not me you need to apologize to" I point at the approaching girl, Sabine. "It's her, she loved it when you were around. You made her feel better all the time, like she did with me and like how Henry will with you"

"You're right" he stand up and offers me a hand. "Thanks"

"You're welcome" I accept the hand but stand up myself so he thinks he helped. "Now go on"

He walked awkwardly towards her, she walked straight past Ezra. Before she got in the car, she looked at me and smiled. I take the bags and box from Kanan, it's great to be back with the family.

 **A/N, I hope you guys enjoyed this. It's my first real AU so I apologize if it's all over the place. Please tell me how I could improve this story, it's also a new writing style for me. Goodbye, have fun.**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N, hey everyone, I'm finally back! I feel a little nervous since I haven't updated for a long time, I hope you'll enjoy this chapter. The idea for this story goes to the wonderful Specter 8, I won't take any credit for this chapter.**

Chapter 2: War Stories

 **Ezra's POV**

It's good to have Zeb home again, the whole family is finally here. I still feel bad for what happened at the train station, but Zeb said that it wasn't a problem. We've just arrived at the house, we don't live far but Zeb had a lot of heavy stuff. I jumped out of the car and ran to the back of it, I'm going to start being more useful around the house.

"Forget it Kid" Zeb walked up behind me and placed a hand on my shoulder, it feels bigger than it actually is.

"I want to help you" I gave my best puppy dogs eyes but Zeb just rolled his.

"Fine" Zeb opened the back of the car revealing 4 bags and what looked like a heavy duty box. "You can carry these two, but that's it"

I grabbed the two bags that were placed in front of me, but that box looked weird. It had stickers covering it, my favourite was the battalion sticker, it was a skull on fire, cracked just above the right eye. I've always wanted to join the same battalion, they went all over the world. Sabine looks at me, one eye brow raised and the look of surprise in her eye.

"You can carry that?" I looked at both bags, one had a piece of metal stuck to it

"What is it?" I put down both bags and pick up the metal, it wasn't just a piece but a whole rack.

"Kid, did you go searching through my bag?" Zeb looked annoyed, he was carrying the other two bags and the big box.

"No, I found it and wanted to know what it was" I put the rack of metal back, it was strange looking. "What is it?"

"It's an old piece of armour from a tank" Zeb walked towards the door. "An old Russian tank"

"Where did you find something like that?" Kanan opened the door for Zeb, the house never looked so empty before. "You must have been pretty far in"

"Dad, you have no idea" Zeb saw the shocked face on Hera's body, he completely forgot. "Kanan, I'm sorry"

"Don't worry about it, but to make it up" Kanan sat in his arm chair, then pointed to the couch. "You can sit down and tell us some tales"

"Fair enough mate" Zeb put all of his stuff by the front door, then took the bags off of me and put them down too.

We all sat down and let Zeb think, he must have had a lot of stories to tell us. Hera made us all some hot chocolate then checked on Chopper before finally sitting down.

"Why not tell us about that tank armour?" Hera laughed at the blunt look on Zeb's face, like it was the most boring day of his life.

"Fine" Zeb shuffled in his spot before telling the story, it must be good.

 **2 Years Ago, Firebase Houston, Afghanistan**

 **Zeb's POV**

"Bridger!" an officer walked into the tent belonging to me and another squad member. "You've got a mission!"

"Already?" I walked from behind a makeshift wall and take the file from the officer. "We aren't expected to receive another mission until next week"

"Well, we need to make an assault on one of the camps" the officer hushed his voice. "You'll be taking your squad and meeting with a British squadron at 20:00, tonight"

"When are we leaving?" I read the basic information, this is going to be annoying.

"In half an hour so get moving" the officer nodded his head then left the tent, I walked out the tent to see my team playing some football **(Soccer for American's)** and neither side was winning.

"Jacko, get over here" the youngest of the five runs over to me. "What is it Zeb? Another mission?"

"Yeah, get your gear, check your weapons and make sure the Humvee is ready to move.

"Sir!" Jacko salutes to me sarcastically, then runs off to do as I asked.

"Everyone else" I loved to mess with my squad, they hate me not using their names.

"Need help with something?" the rest approach me.

"Yeah" I hand the file to Rooster, my second in command. "We've got a mission, we leave in 30 minutes. Rooster, make sure that Intel is correct. Boomer, get 2 bricks of C4 and anything else you think we might need. Logan, make sure your medical kit is fully stocked. Yankee, double check your sniper, we can't have it jamming again"

"We're meeting a British squad?" Rooster looks up, he isn't very happy. "Why are we meeting these guys?"

"I don't know, but don't complain" everyone quickly rushes off to do their jobs.

 **Present**

"Can we skip all that nonsense? I want to hear the good part" Ezra piped up, I forgot how energetic he is.

"Sure" I start telling the story a few hours ahead.

 **Past**

We parked the Humvee in a small town owned by the local forces, so they were friendly. The team we met up with was SAS, so we might be here to assist them. The plan was to enter the caves, move through the mountain then assault the ammo dumps. Anything after that is just extra work, but it would be fun.

"Don't get me killed today" I hear Jacko pray as we move into the cave, it's been lit with overhead lighting so we could see.

"We won't die" Logan says as he lightly punches Jacko's arm. "Unless I can't get to you"

"Yanks" one of the Brits says out of nowhere. "The only thing louder than gunshots"

"Got a problem with us?" Rooster snaps, I had to stand next to him to calm him down.

"No" the Brit shrugged his shoulders. "Just that one with the mouth" he says as he points at Logan.

"Hey!" Logan says defensively, he thinks about it for a minute. "I can't think of a comeba-"

I hold up my fist to indicate that we need to stop moving, we've approached a door. I stand on one side with Boomer on the other, Jacko and Rooster are watching the door while Logan and Yankee watch behind us. The SAS squad stand to the side with weapons ready, we were about to breach.

Boomer opens the door slightly, he closes it again and holds up two fingers, crosses his arms then holds up four fingers. I nod and move to hold the handle, I count to three in my head before opening the door for Jacko and Rooster to clear out any enemies. My vision goes black and I hear faint voices, I try to move my body but I'm unable to.

"Move back!" I hear someone shout then very faint gunshots, I feel pain in my right shoulder and stomach area.

"Sir!" My body shakes. "Sir!" It shakes again. "Sir!" My eyes open and colour blinds me, I'm inside some rusted container.

"What…me…door" is all I can get out, my lungs burn. "Logan?"

"That's me" I feel a sharp pain in my leg, I feel better after a few minutes. "Where's that helo?"

"Should be here by now!" I hear Jacko shout, he isn't in the room with us.

"Sir, you've lost a lot of blood" Logan takes a needle and injects it into leg, I pass out.

 **Present**

"And then what?" Ezra jumps to his feet.

"Sit down Ezra, you're acting like a kid again" Sabine said annoyed, she moved her coloured hair out of her face to show him _the look_.

"Fine" Ezra sat back down with his arms crossed, a lot has changed in the last four years.

"I woke up in a medical tent, they shipped me off to some hospital in Germany then sent me back to camp before I could request to come back home" Hera's eyes were full of worry, but she quickly calmed down.

"You've been through a lot then?" Kanan asked worried, I could tell why.

"Yeah, then Jacko gave this to me when I got back there" I smiled at when they tried to cook me something but the chef wouldn't allow it, which was for the better because they can't cook.

"Bed time!" Hera said out of nowhere. "And that means everyone, outside of this house you can be whatever. But inside of it, you're still my kids"

"You haven't changed" I say as I swiftly move up the stairs, I now slept in Ezra's room since Chopper has mine.

I flop onto my bed, it's softer then I remember, it makes those bed rolls look like stone. I'm happy to be back, with my family.

 **A/N, this is short, and bad, but I needed to get use to writing again. I re-wrote this about 4 times and this is the better one, sorry Specter that this is a waste of your idea. Please tell me what you think and how I could improve. Goodbye, it's good to be back.**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N, sorry this is late but I'm working on a project for school, two of them really. Anyway, I've got some amazing people helping me with these stories, so a BIG shout out to Shaylee and Kohoi. You guys really are amazing and so is everyone in the fandom for helping me through this rough time, I owe you one. I'm going to be looking at the reviews and thinking over how I will use them. Thanks for everything, now please enjoy.**

Chapter 3: First day back

 **Ezra's POV**

Zeb's been home for about a week now and all he does is sleep, I don't mind it because all that matters to me is he's home. I'm back at school after a lousy summer, both of my best friends were in Spain for most of it, they're siblings so I can't blame them for going away together. Today is our first day back and I can't wait to see them again, it's been so long!

"Kid, you awake?" Zeb asked from the doorway.

"Yeah, I'm just about to leave" I flung a heavy bag over my shoulder.

"I know" Zeb hugged me and it felt...strange. "Don't worry about school, it's almost over"

"I know that" I ran out the front door and down the street to meet my friend Charlotte.

Funny thing about Charlotte, she's dating this new guy from school. I don't know what's going on but they act like they've known each other forever, I'm jealous since me and Charlotte have been friends since preschool. I've always been too scared to ask her out, but it won't happen now.

"Ezra!" A girl shouted behind me, I turn around to see Charlotte. "Why haven't you called me?"

"I thought you were busy with your boyfriend" I joked, the grin didn't help.

"Really? You're going to start that now?" Charlotte joked along. "We had fun, but I don't know"

"About what?" I can see the glint in her eyes, he did something.

"He bought me a gift" Charlotte lifted her head to reveal a dolphin with pieces of Jade in it.

"It looks nice" I lied, it looks scruffy. "When did he get it?"

"He bought it in England" Charlotte seems happy, so I'll be happy too.

"Why did he go to England? I thought he hated it there" The bus pulled up in front of us and we climbed on, we sat at the back.

"He does, I guess to see family" Charlotte looks...depressed.

"Are you ok?" I sounded a bit too concerned, maybe I should have left it.

"Yeah, it's just..." Charlotte hugged me. "My dad doesn't want me to be with him"

YES! Wait...I shouldn't be happy about this, she's got to be miserable.

"Why not?!"

"Because he's new to the school so no one knows him"

"That's a dumb reason, how did you meet Daniel?"

"We met over this cool site called " **(I thought it would be a cool idea to put this in, I've never seen this site in a story before)**

"You met this guy over the internet and started dating him?" This is a lot to take in.

"Yeah, people do it all the time" Charlotte looked annoyed, I'm going to keep my mouth shut now. "You should try the site out, there's so many amazing people on there"

"Like who?" Might as well talk for the bus ride.

"One person is called MyDestinyIsWithTheWolves, she makes amazing stories and mostly about wolves. They're so sweet and always have something to keep you reading, I wish we talked more"

"Anyone else?" This wolf person sounds like someone to look into.

"Loads of them!" Charlotte threw her hands into the air. "One of my best friends is called RadioActiveRebel, but people call her KC. She makes loads of stories and they're all different, she worked with this other amazing author called AzulaBlue92 and she stopped writing. I'm really sad about that, she kept me writing and her stories were magnificent"

"Wow, who's next?"

"How about Specter 8? She use to write stories about herself which I found interesting, imagine being in the middle of your own story. Even better, she made songfics and romance stuff"

"You must really love this site"

"It's the best site EVER!" Charlotte looked at all the heads turned towards her. "Sorry"

"Never mind them, next person"

"Shadow Elise Bridger, she's really passionate about her OC. She makes stories and songfics, her songfics are always amazing and have a back story"

"She sounds talented"

"Shadow is, they all are! But she can't write for awhile" I hate the sad look on her face.

"Tell me about someone else"

"Firehawk720 makes awesome stories, the newest one was even better. Unfortunately, school is stopping everyone from uploading properly"

"My brother annoys me all the time so it's even worse, this site is the best place to get lost and just enjoy things. If this site was a town, then it would be the best place to live"

I hit my head on the seat in front of me when bus stopped suddenly, I look out the window to find a roadblock. The door opens and two soldiers in white uniform enter the bus.

"We are searching this bus, we have reasons to believe that one of you are illegally entering the country!" one of them shouts through the bus.

"What are they talking about?" Charlotte seems worried, is this about Daniel trying to get his citizenship?

"Calm down, everything is ok" I try to reassure.

"Excuse me sir" Charlotte grabs one of the soldiers shirts. "Who are you looking for?"

"Daniel Harriet, do you know him?" the soldier puts the finger over the trigger.

"No, we don't know each other" Charlotte looks hurt, she turns to me as the soldier leaves the bus.

"That's private military, Zeb told me about them. They're called The Empire" I whispered, she was holding back tears.

"What do they want with him?" Charlotte hugged me tightly.

"I don't know, they must have just gotten jurisdiction in the area" I hugged her back. "My dad can sort it out, he knows someone"

"Thanks Ezra, you're the best friend ever" Charlotte kissed my forehead lightly. "Sorry, old habit"

"It's ok" I look outside the window to see soldiers running down the side of the bus, shouting something faintly.

"You can leave, we've found him" the officer tells the driver.

I look at Charlotte, she's heart broken

 **A/N, hey guys, I hope you like this chapter. It's been awhile since I wrote a chapter because of holidays and funerals, but I'm trying to start up again. This chapter was just finished today, so sorry if it's a little messed up. I would appreciate it if you could tell the authors I mentioned so they can see this, I feel like they all deserve it. I'll make a special chapter for everyone, because you all deserve something. Goodbye, I love you all**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N, OMG! I haven't updated this in so long, I've just been really busy. I'm sorry, but working on several projects really eats up time. Anyway, the credit for this chapter goes to Kohoi and my new amazing co author for this story. Enjoy guys.**

Chapter 4: Little Light

 **Ezra's POV**

"Come on Zeb!" I pleaded across the dinner table, I was starting to get annoyed. "He took away Charlotte's boyfriend, I have to help her"

"Sit down kid and eat your soup" Zeb didn't make eye contact with me since the start of the conversation, he was too busy staring at his empty bowl

"Zeb, I want to try and make you all proud" I sat down and crossed my arms, this is going to take some work.

"I think you misunderstand the word 'proud' Ezra" Kanan told me, he looked happy. "You're making us proud right now by following the family motto"

"If all you do is fight for your own life, then your life is worth nothing" Hera smiled, she looked around the table taking in the sight. "It's been a long time since we all just sat down and had dinner together"

"Not all of us" Sabine said coldly.

"Sabine, it's not your fault" Hera looked sad, I don't know what they're talking about. "She drowned that day, a log had trapped her leg"

"I could have done something!" Sabine stood up and ran to her room, crying. I've never seen Sabine cry that much.

"Hera?" I ask my mother, she just looks at me and starts crying too. I look around and everyone walks to their rooms, I'm sat here, alone. The phone starts to ring but I can't bring myself to answer it, what happened? To who?

"Ezra Bridger! If you don't pick up this phone then I'll shove it where the sun don't shine!" I jumped out of my seat and scrambled for the phone.

"Calm down Charlotte, what's so important" there was a minute of silence and I heard some murmurs in the background.

"We need your help" Charlotte's voice had gone quite. "But there's a problem"

"Sure, what's the problem?" I could tell this wasn't good, she sighed before finally answering.

"They're looking for Zeb, apparently they want him to join them" I dropped the phone in shock, how did they found out about this? Why are they after Zeb? Why are there so many unanswered questions?

"Ezra, the Empire is taking control of the city"

"Why?"

"I don't know"

"Why do you need my help?"

The line went silent, you could hear the crying upstairs.

"We're starting to rebel" Charlotte sounded sad, wait?

"Why? They aren't that bad, I think they made our lives better" I listened carefully and heard the murmurs again, she was being forced into this. "I have to go, Chopper is crying again"

"Ok Ezra, see ya tomorrow by the sunlight room" Charlotte hung up, I couldn't believe it, what's going on.

"Congratulations kid, you didn't sell us out" Zeb patted me on the back and sat down. "I listened to the call, they're trying to blackmail us into joining them"

"Who died?" I say Zeb holding a picture, she looked like Sabine but had a green eye and a blue one.

"Her name was Emily, Sabine's twin" Zeb kept his voice in a whisper, I ask to stop anyone from getting upset. "You're too young to remember her, but we went swimming in the river and took you with us" I can't stand the secrets.

"WHY WON'T ANYONE TELL ME ANYTHING?!"I threw a chair across the room and heard it break on the wall, I turned back around to see everyone staring at me, not in shock or hate or pity, but in fear.

"She drowned because she tried to save you" Sabine walked up to me. "She saved you and hoped you would live a good life, she always protected you"

"It was my fault?"

"TOO DAMN RIGHT IT WAS YOUR FAULT!" Sabine tackled me into a hug, she held me tight. "But that doesn't stop me from loving you, I knew you would grow up like her"

"Why didn't any of you tell me?" I watched as Hera walked back upstairs, Kanan mouthed something to me, maybe an apology and followed her upstairs. "I'm going to sleep, too much has happened today"

"I silently climbed up the stairs, every step making a creaking sound. I walked towards my room and shut the door, sliding down it until I'm sat on the floor. It was my fault, no wonder Sabine ignored me, why was I born into this family? Kanan always said that things happen with great reason, but what was my reason...

 **Sabine's POV**

I walked up stairs. When I got to my room, I layed down on my bed. I closed my eyes and tried to sleep but I couldn't. I kept thinking of what happened the day Emily died. I blamed Ezra for a while and sometimes I still do. I realize now it wasn't his fault. I love him but I still blame him for what happened.

I sighed. I got up and went to Ezra's door. I knocked lightly. Ezra opened the door.

"What's wrong Sabine?" He asked.

I sighed but spoke, "Look, I do blame you for what happened, but I realize now that it wasn't your fault. I'm sorry I blamed you. Do you forgive me?" I asked.

"Of course I forgive you Sabine but, it really was my fault. Maybe if I wasn't born Emily would still be alive. I should be the one apologizing." Ezra said.

I seen the hurt in his eyes. It hurt me to here him talk like that. I wrapped him in a hug and spoke to him, "Ezra, don't you ever blame yourself for what happened. What happened was completely out of control so don't blame yourself. It was not your fault."

"Thanks Sabine." He said back.

"You're welcome Ez. We better get some sleep." I said.

"Yeah, I got to figure something out tomorrow anyways. Goodnight Sabine." He said.

"Night Ezra." I said back.

We both went to bed. I feel a lot better now that I've forgiven him. I wonder what Ezra has to figure out though. It's probably nothing. I won't worry about it. I layed on my bed and slowly drifted to sleep.

 **Hey y'all! It's Specter 8. I will be Bullseye's co-author for this story. Anyways, I hope y'all have enjoyed and we will update soon. Bye y'all!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N, so it's funny making this story, because I never thought it would be like this. The original idea seemed a bit far fetched, so I'm now doing this with Specter 8 who did an amazing job. I would like to give all the credit for this chapter to her. Thanks for all the support, and here's Specter's AN.**

Chapter 5: Bonds Stronger Than Blood

 **Ezra's POV**

Me and Sabine walked to school together, we've been getting along better since that night. Over the past week, things have been wierd. Zeb's been more agitated, Kanan's been more cautious around the city, Hera has been watching over Chopper a lot more. It's funny, Chopper is the size of Zeb's forearm, so he doesn't have much trouble.

On the news, there has been reports of attacks. Apparently the Empire is getting reckless, and are employing more people. Daniel came back to school yesterday, they gave him his citizenship which isn't too bad. Him and Charlotte have been talking, mostly about what's going to happen in the future.

"Ezra!" Charlotte came running down the sidewalk, she jumped and hugged me. "It's good to see you in one piece"

"Um..." Is all I manage to get out of my mouth, Sabine giggles and I glare at her. "Yeah, why would I be in multiple pieces?"

"Oh, you don't know?" Charlotte kissed my forehead, which is strange. Very strange. "I have a surprise for you" She leans to my ear. "Meet me in the library"

"Cool, I can't wait to see the surprise" I smile at her, she takes my hand and we walk onto the bus which had just arrived. "Why are you holding my hand?"

"Daniel is acting wierd, he seems different" Charlotte squeezes my hand. "Is it ok we date for awhile?"

I trip and fall over, everyone looks at me and snickers. Charlotte giggles and helps me up, her green eyes are deep.

"Hey, don't get lost in them" Charlotte sat down in the back row, I sat down with her. "Ok, I can only give you some details"

"Right" I say as she rests her head on my shoulder.

"Daniel broke up with me" Already I want to break him. "But he was acting wierd, like he was brain washed"

"Ok" I point a finger at her, she nods her head in search of an answer. "You're crazy"

"Ezra, I love you. But if you call me crazy again, I'll chuck you out the window" Charlotte giggled, she squeezes my hand again. "I've loved you for awhile, but I was too afraid to show it"

I laugh as Sabine walks over, she passes me her phone. She got a text from Hera, it said to be careful in school

"What's going on?" I whispered.

"I think mom is being protective, but still, be careful" Sabine retreated back to her seat.

"I'm sorry Ezra" Charlotte wrapped her free arm around me. "It must be hard moving around the city, the attacks have been getting more violent"

"I don't like this" I tried to free myself, but Charlotte held on tight.

"When Daniel does get back to normal, we'll decide then" Charlotte made a noise, one that said she enjoyed the way she was cuddled up to me. "But for now, protect me Ezra"

"Ezra? Protecting someone?" A boy at the front of the bus laughed, he signaled for his 'friends' to join in. "If Ezra really can protect you, maybe he can protect you from Daniel"

It stung me, and it hurt Charlotte too. She lightly cried into my shoulder, why am I just sat here?!

"Hey!" I jumped up, surprising Charlotte. "I may not be able protect anyone that well, but I can try"

The boy stood up and approached me, he was asking for a fight. Before I knew it, my lungs were empty and I was up against the door. He hand his hand wrapped around my throat, I can't breath.

"You can't even protect yourse-" before he finishes I push myself off the door and kicking him in the stomach at the same time, he stumbles backwards.

I go to punch him but he grabs my hand and throws me into Charlotte, she screams in pain.

"Oi!" The bus driver shouts. "None of that one my bus!"

I scowl at the boy, he walks back to him friends. I turn to Charlotte and she's holding her wrist.

"I'm sorry" I look away.

"Don't worry about it" She smiles, I kiss her forehead as a joke. Something tastes wierd, like...

"Blood" I move away and wipe my lips, red liquid stained my skin. "You're bleeding"

Charlotte lets me wipe away the blood, it stained my shirt but I couldn't care. I dab lightly, she gives off small hisses of pain.

"You always looked out for me" She laughs, I laugh back. "Thanks Ezra"

"No problem" I stood up as the bus stopped, I saw Sabine run off with her friends. This is one wierd cuty. After school, I met Charlotte in the library.

"Okay. What's the surprise?" I ask.

She takes out a small box and hands it to me. I open it. Inside the box I see a necklace. It's like the ones they have in the army. I turn it over and see my name on the tag.

"Do you like it?" She asked.

"I love it. Thanks Charlotte." I say with a smile.

"You're welcome. I'm glad you like it. I figured since your brother was in the army, I'd give you a necklace with the tags on it." She said.

"Well, I love it." I say as I put it on.

"It looks nice on you." She says.

"Thanks. I gotta get home. Thanks for the gift, Do you want me to walk you home?" I ask.

She nods. I take her hand and walk her home. After I tell her goodbye I walk home. I walk through the front door.

"Hey Ez. Nice necklace, where'd you get it?" Sabine asked me.

"Charlotte, gave it to me." I said.

"Oh, okay. Well, dinner is ready. Let's go eat." She said.

After dinner I went to bed. Tomorrow I'd try to figure out what was wrong with Daniel.

 **Hey guys! This is Specter 8, and me and Craig hope y'all enjoyed this chapter. We'll update as soon as we can. Well, we hope y'all enjoyed! Bye y'all!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey guys, Bullseye here. So I'm actually really sick because it's winter. Weird, I know, but it's the worst time for me to right. Updates will take longer to write and publish, I'm planning to write all the chapter for you guys, then release them all in one day. Sorry guys, but it's really hard for me to think and write. Anyway, thanks for reading, and I hope to update soon :)**


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